Camping the second time around: success. Mostly. I had a pretty nasty head cold: congestion, cough, runny nose, watery eyes, but with our busy summer schedule and Jeff working more weekends, Brody's first birthday coming up and wedding planning, our options for getting out of town are slim. Jeff had high hopes that the fresh mountain air would heal my cold. I went along with it, not wanting to ruin his enthusiasm. So with our car packed to the brim, Brody and Remi squawking in the backseat and my constant companion tissue box by my side we took off.
It was a beautiful Friday afternoon and we couldn't get there soon enough. We have what we refer to as "our spot" outside of Red Lodge and we had our fingers crossed, hoping it wasn't already taken. Alas, after slow going down one of the bumpiest roads ever ( I swear) we found our spot WAS taken! On the bright side I think we found an even better one. Building camp commenced. Brody was set on helping dad while I supervised and tried not to admit I was feeling even worse. Being higher up in the mountains was making my head throb even more. The going was slow, and I was getting hungry, which means I was getting cranky and my pounding head was not helping.
Brody was pretty impressed with the tent, but once he realized the walls weren't holding his weight all that well he was ready to get out. We were we waiting for Jeff's friend Alex and his girlfriend Kara to get to the campsite before we started dinner and thankfully they didn't have to much trouble finding us. Just complaints about the terrible road. And so the fire starting got underway and dinner preparations were taken.
Jeff is that camper who wants to do it all. He is, I admit, efficient , but he also doesn't trust anyone else to build the fire or cook as good as he can. Normally I am ok with that. It's less things I have to do, but one person doing it all takes more time and by this point I was regretting going camping. My nose was raw from blowing it so much, I had no patience for mommy duty and my stomach was growling for food. I'm not normally a complainer...at least I like to think I'm not. But I was feeling miserable. Unfortunately Alex and Kara were witnesses to angry, mean, impatient sick Riley. I apologized over and over, but in the end I didn't even want to be around people. By the time dinner was ready I felt sick to my stomach and could barely eat and said a crabby goodnight and tried to get warm in our freezing tent, all the while cursing camping wondering why the hell I liked it in the first place. By the time Jeff and Brody came to bed I was in a sleep daze and having two more warm bodies in bed was nice.
Waking up to this little mans face...I don't know if a bad morning is possible. Having Jeff pop his head in the tent telling me coffee is percolating over the fire? Best camping morning ever! I woke up feeling better. Still stuffy and congested but my head wasn't pounding.
Breakfast cooking, hot coffee in my thermos and a good teeth brushing later, I felt positive about the day. The sun was finally reaching our camp sight and even Brody seemed pretty content. I think one of the keys for camping with kids is DIRT. As in, they will get dirty, they will put dirt in their mouth. Dirt is inevitable so just accept it.
Remi was a fan of warming himself by the fire. He was pretty low clearance so the morning dew soaked his belly. He had the shivers and welcomed the heat. The sun started to really bathe our spot and the warmth was glorious. Since I felt so crummy the night before, I didn't get to eat a s'more. I had to have one, else it wouldn't really be camping! S'more for breakfast? Yes, please.
We slowly got camp packed up and began the SLOW drive to the trail head. I say slow because the road just got progressively worse and when the trail head came in sight I am pretty sure we all let out a thank God! Preparing for a hike takes time, getting packs loaded, making sure there's enough water ect. Preparing for a hike with a baby in tow....felt like forever. At least it felt like it because we were all itching to get a move on. I insisted on starting off packing Brody. We've hiked the trail before and I knew the beginning was easier and I know myself, which means I definitely start off with more energy and drive. Plus, of course I wanted pictures proving I packed Brody!
Packing Brody was hard work. I barely made it a mile but I'm still proud of myself and I would love to try it again. He was such a trooper and barely made a noise. In fact, he slept most of the hike down! Remi is also a trooper. He's been on a few hikes with Jeff and I and he always has to lead. He'll run ahead, check the trail out, then run back and lead us for awhile before running ahead again. Let's just say, on the drive home, Remi didn't make a peep. He was totally wiped out. But he loved every second of the hike. Jeff took over packing Brody, which meant we didn't have to take as many breathers, but he even admitted it's harder with a baby. Hiking surprisingly stopped my nose from running. But once we got up to Glacier Lake I couldn't keep the faucet off. Which was frustrating and meant I was going through my box quickly. My cranky cloak slipped right on and I was totally ready to hike back down and go home. I love hiking and the outdoors but I can only take so much when I feel sick. Jeff sensed my growing impatience and begrudgingly agreed to begin our hike down. He could've stayed at the lake for hours and got his fish on, but we agreed another time. And wouldn't you know, being on the move stopped the drip.
I am so glad we went camping because it's an experience we'll have forever, and I definitely want to do it again, but I'm pretty sure I will not agree to it unless I am 100% healthy! As for Brody, this is the first of many family outings. Thanks Montana for giving us this beautiful land to enjoy!
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